5 comments about Santa vs. the Snowman 3D.

1. I saw this flick the first time in 3D in the IMAX theater. Let me tell you, the graphics were no less than stunning. The movie starts out very sweet and cute... but soon shifts-gears to reveal a hysterical story with some great satire... some laugh-out-loud one-liners and clever references to other movies! With voices by Jonathan Winters, Victoria Jackson and Ben Stein, this is a fun movie for all ages. At the end of the movie, the "outtakes" are very fun too.
   
   I was so excited to hear that this was coming out on DVD, I had to purchase it immediately. Though the movie was still just as fun, I must admit I was a bit disappointed with the 3D effects on a television. Part of the problem is they use the old-fashioned red-blue 3D glasses, which really detract from the rich colors of the film... making it seem almost black & white. (In the IMAX theater, they used the gray 3D glasses which allowed much better effect and kept the colors more vivid.)
   
   I was also disappointed to see no real Extra features... no director's commentary or behind-the-scenes or anything. All they had were a couple of simple interactive games, which became tiresome after about 20 seconds.
   
   In summary... a great flick... much better if you can see it in 3D Imax splendor... but still a fun movie!



2. It is very difficult to review this DVD and give it correct stars. If you consider the 2D version, it would get 4 or 5 stars as the animation and colors are wonderful with a very humorous story. BUT the 3D version is terrible. The 3D is about the worst ever, it never really produces a 3D effect and the red/blue glasses dull and changes to colors making it almost a black and white film. None of the 3D effects really work. The best of them is the falling snow. Often the viewer sees the two images ruining the whole effect and making it impossible to concentrate on the story.
   
   A recommendation is to forget the 3D version and just play the 2D version. Both are on the disk.
   
   When 3D was first introduced, people complained that they got headaches from the 3D. This DVD definitely falls into that catagory. Perhaps in Imax with the gray poloroid glasses, the effects work. NOT on this disk.



3. It really is an enjoyable film, Awsome in Imax 3D and at home if you have the Sensio, or field sequential version. The dvd that comes with the Red/Blue "3D" glasses inside doesn't work and is only good for 2D viewing. The 3D effects on the Sensio and field sequential versions work as they should! The field sequential version IS availible on Amazon so get it instead of the Red/Blue Analglyphic.
   
   -I originaly gave 4 stars on the Red/ Blue version only for the fact that I really enjoyed the film in IMAX the Sensio DVD that just came out should recieve 5, however you can't change that in a review edit.



4. Someone bought this 3D DVD for my almost 5 year old daughter. We thought the special effects would be fascinating and they were. However, within minutes of the movie's beginning my daughter was in tears. I won't say why but she found the plot frightening. Several times during the movie I tried to talk her out of watching but she wanted to see what happened in the end. Fortunately the movie is relatively short. Overall, I found the story to be a cynical look at Christmas. As an adult, I think it might be humourous to watch after a hard day of Christmas shopping but I urge caution before showing it to young children. There was way too much animated violence to match the spirit of Christmas.



5. This movie seems to be even more fun for the adults than the kids at christmas time, packed with references from popular science fiction movies (SW) and action films. The snowman has a depth of character you wouldn't expect from his simple look and makes a great arch-nemesis for Santa. And it actually got the kids thinking because the snowman has an understandable motive for taking on Santa.
   The 3D effects were good through most of it, even better with a bigger screen TV.

1 comments about The Absolutely Ultimate Christmas.

1. There are 4-selections-a movie-THE INSPECTOR GENERAL, a danny kayemovie (nothing about christmas) justsilliness. A Set (4) Christmas cartoons (cute), a selection of singing and non-singing christmas music and about 20 sing a-long songs. There is one screensaver through-outthe dvd, wraped christmas gifts whichis marred by instructions on how togo forward or back on a track.Sowhy buy this dvd ?--buy it for the music, you will enjoy many beautiful christmas songs and have fun with the sing a-longs.

5 comments about Christmas Glory From Westminster.

1. A formal holiday video that will put you in the mood for Christmas. It shows a "high brow" concert from Westminster with soloist Charlotte Church and Andrea Bocelli. The voices, especially Andrea's are pleasant and powerful. The boy's choir is also inspirational. The scenery and background are very British as well as the commentary. A nice change of pace.



2. A Christmas package with Andrea Bocelli, Charlotte Church, choir boys and scripture readings. It has the Christmas spirit and Andrea Bocelli sounds great. An evening of Christmas music, readings, and poetry in a beautiful abbey are presented to the viewer for 60 minutes.
   
   (Wallingford)



3. Sure to become a classic in our household, the "Christmas Glory from Westminster" is a fantastic tapestry of sights and sounds. The enchanting architecture of the abbey decorated for the Holidays creates a beautiful backdrop for the singers who perform some of the most peaceful of musical compositions. This is a DVD that will soothe even the most stressed-out of us during the hustle and bustle of the Christmas season.



4. The soul fulfilling voice of Andrea was complemented by the rest of the cast. A very entertaining DVD.



5. Both my husband and I were touched by the combined grandeur of the venue, the beauty of the voices and the spiritual power of the selections. This is what Christmas should be about.

3 comments about At Christmas.

1. Kiri Te Kanawa can do no wrong. The background setting scenes were wonderful - as was Dame Kiri Te Kanawa!... What more can be said?



2. Although the deceptively angel-faced Kiri has all the battling instincts of her Irish/Maori forebears, she's not here to defend herself. So I shall.
   I take issue with all a recent reviewer had to say about Kiri's performance -- except for "she is pretty and nobody curtsies like Kiri."
   
   Bland? Yes, I agree, but what can one expect? This is a Christmas recital, not a hoe-down. If you care to see a very unbland Kiri, watch her as Elvira in Don Giovanni.
   
   How can any follower of opera say that Kiri's career is "significantly winding down."? In the latter part of 2004 she had four recitals in the U.S. and Canada, ending the year at the Los Angeles Opera with seven engagements in the lead role of the American opera,"Vanessa". Sold out. The case rests.
   
   Can anyone honestly say that calling attention to Kiri looking down at a prompter is legitimate criticism? And for the single memory lapse? If that were not enough, to gleefully point to another lapse she had years ago at the Met. Picky, picky, picky. These 'defects' only tell me she is very human -- and I find them endearing. All of the stars of opera have their lapses, yes, even the incomparable Pavarotti and Joan Sutherland. It's easy to catch a misstep in Kir1's singing -- her diction is flawless, unlike that of Joan Sutherland, who seems totally unaware there are consonants in language. The review is so out of touch with reality that I hope I'm not seeing undue bias here. It's incredible that it could happen in this land of the free, but this lovely, gifted person was barred from joining an upscale country club in New York. Management considered her 'colored'. Sad and so very stupid. In all other countries on earth Kiri is sought after to join any manner of clubs, social organizations, etc. She would be an asset to any.
   
   Then what follows is a cursory dismissal of one of the must successful careers in opera with the words "hoo-haa of the 1990's". How is success measured? By money. Given gladly by countless Kiri Lovers. Would this group - at times referred to disparagingly as "fans" - shell out millions for a person of "bland presentation and mediocrity re all things musical?" Is it possible that a solitary critic is right and the rest of the world wrong? The 'rest' that includes Sir Georg Solti, Sir Colin Davis, Andre Previn and Prince Charles, who chose Kiri to sing at his wedding to Diana. I could go on and on but I'll name just one more. Our own Leonard Bernstein, who when looking for a soprano to sing the lead role in his recording of West Side Story said, "I want the best the world of opera has to offer." We all know who that was.
   
   In that decade Kiri's earnings exceeded 500,000 pounds, yearly --double that to get equivalent dollars. A phenomenal sum for an opera diva. Some of that came from her crossover into popular music, a la Bernstein, Broadway and Andrew Lloyd Webber. And jazz.
   
   Predictably, her style in jazz was panned by 'purists' -- she did not sound like other jazz singers. As if jazz had rigid criteria. It's called jazz because all such singers are unconventional and bring their unique style into that medium. So did Kiri, with the result that her recordings flew off the shelves in the U.S., Europe and Japan. The best of her jazz recordings (CD) is 'Kiri - Sidetracks', with Andre Previn, Ray Brown and Mundell Lowe. Sorry, sold out long ago at Amazon, but may be had at their vendors -- for a hefty price.
   
   One of the side effects of her popular records was to bring listeners into the realm of opera. "Hey, what a voice! What have I been missing?" They take a look-see and are promptly snared by what her first conductor at Covent Garden, the crusty and uncompromising taskmaster, Sir Georg Solti, said about Kiri. "The face and voice of an angel." Two of my friends who had never seen an opera were converted by her.
   
   One of the best of Kiri's videos is 'Le Nozze di Figaro', held at Glyndebourne and in which she stars as the countess. Until recently it could be had only in used condition on VHS, at a price ranging up to $120. This past August it was released in DVD format, $15.98 at Amazon. I know that Kiri Lovers probably have a copy but I urge all newcomers to buy one soon. That price won't last, it never does. Amazon has displayed a message warning of a possible difficulty in obtaining the DVD. This has always been a forerunner of either a sold out condition or a price increase.
   
   In closing, here's another look at Kiri's 'versatility'. Her high school records include some reproving remarks by the principal. Kiri was a strong, physically well-conditioned girl, having been taught all sports by her adopted Maori father, including boxing. It seems she had used that skill to knock down a white male student for slandering her Maori ancestry.
   
   Way to go, Kiri!



3. This is a very nice concert and beautifully done. Kiri does an excellent job in every production she is involved in. It is worth getting and seeing year after year.

No comments about The Andy Griffith Show - Special Holiday Release.

1 comments about Monster Christmas.

1. This is a cute story about a boy (Tom) who has several 'hidden' monsters living with him. The story revolves around their search for one of their missing monster friends (Colin) on Christmas eve. Colin ends up scaring Santa who falls out of his sleigh, and into Tom's chimney, hurting his leg. Tom and his monster friends decide to help Santa deliver presents while he rests in Tom's bed. Meanwhile there's also a cat burglar on the loose in Tom's neighborhood where the monsters are searching for Colin. Comic relief is provided by two bumbling policemen searching for the burglar. Everything ends up rosy at the end with a monster party and Santa bidding farewell as he flys off on his sleigh. And the policemen catch the cat burglar.
   
   There are a couple of cute and somewhat catchy songs, particularly the one where Tom and his monster friends make some Christmas 'pudding' or 'pud' as they say (a mixture of a little of everything).
   
   This is not animation up to quality Disney standards, or even Hanna Barbara for that matter, but it's done with love nonetheless. My five-year-old son loves this movie.
   
   Note that there is no mention at all of the real Christmas story.

1 comments about Madagascar/ The Penguins' Whacked-Out Holiday DVD 2-Pack.

1. I love this movie including the happy birthday song and tpwohdvditpccmfand more jingle bells monkey smells melman laid an egg marty thinks that alex stinks the camels say oy vey is a good song please kids do not sing it at home without your parent`s permission

No comments about Choo Choo Christmas.

No comments about Santa Claus Conquers the Martians.

No comments about Christmas With Jose Carreras.